1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to sound generating novelty greeting cards and processes, and more particularly, to a process and circuit for controlling operation of the sound generator carried by greeting cards.
2. Description of the Background Art
Business cards having various types and configurations of sound generators are still not that well known, and remain a novelty item. Typically, the sound generator is attached to the inside of a folded card such as a greeting card, an announcement or a business card. Usually, the card includes a sound emitting device and a switch that activates the sound emitting device. The switch is provided with a pair of contacts that are held electrically open by a tongue mechanism that is positioned between the contacts of the switch. When the business card is in an open position, movement of the tongue mechanism during the opening of the card allows the contacts of the switch to close in order to electrically activate the sound emitting device to produce audio sound. If the business card is in a closed position however, the contacts of the switch are held apart by the tongue so that the switch remains in an electrically open state to deactivate the sound emitting device and thereby stop the production of audio sound.
Almost all acoustic cards are folded into two or more surfaces, with a sound generator, battery and speaker mounted on one of the interior surfaces, and an actuator that spans the fold of between the two adjoining surfaces. Some of these acoustic cards are physically bulky and their actuator tends to become deformed and intermittently inoperable as a result of repeated use. Other models of acoustic cards use electrical actuators that depend upon a tongue that is made of an electrically insulating material, and is connected to an audio sound generator mounted on one side of the card and attached to the surface of the card on the opposite side of the fold. The presence of the sound generator is therefore concealed while the card is folded into a closed position. Consequently, rough handling, such as an opening of the card by rotating the two planar interior surfaces more than one hundred and eighty degrees around the fold, may destroy the connection of the actuator, frequently allowing the card to become a nuisance by broadcasting sound continuously, even after the interior surfaces have been closed, until the battery has been drained.
Since the contacts of the switch mechanically contact the tongue mechanism, misplacement and distortion of the tongue mechanism will usually cause a malfunction of both the switch and the sound emitting device when the business card is moved from its open position to its closed position. Moreover, the presence of foreign material between the tongue mechanism and the contacts of the switch, or abrasion of the tongue mechanism and the contacts of the switch, will cause the contacts of the switch to be abruptly opened to interrupt the operation of the sound emitting device or to unexpectedly close to allow the sound emitting device to produce audio sound when a user does not want the audio sound. Such unpredictable operation of the sound emitting device destroys the utility of the card long before expiration of the life of the battery that powers the audio generator, and tends to diminish the novelty and merchantability of acoustic cards.
Recent efforts to improve the design of the switch and tongue mechanism have improved the reliability of the acoustic card, but have introduced complexity into the structure of the acoustic card with a concomitant difficulty in manufacture.
It is an object of the present invention to provide an improved acoustic card and process for operating an acoustic card.
It is another object to enhance the durability of an acoustic card equipped with a sound generator.
It is still another object to provide an improved acoustic card that is less susceptible to a malfunction by its sound generator.
It is yet another object to provide an acoustic card having an electrical actuator able to avoid abrasion of the contacts of an electrical switch operating the sound generator.
It is still yet another object to provide an acoustic card having a sound generator able to predictably furnish audio sounds throughout the battery life of the card.
It is a further object to provide an acoustic card equipped with a sound generator battery and actuator that is able to repeatedly and predictably broadcast audio sounds during the life of the battery.
It is a still further object to provide a design for an acoustic card that has a simple design, is easy to manufacture, is reliable in operation even after repeated use, and exhibits minimal failure during that use.
It is also an object to provide an acoustic card having a reduced thickness.
These and other objects may be achieved with an acoustic card constructed with a first flap separated by a fold from a second flap, a sound generator mounted on a circuit board driving a speaker, and a battery that powers the sound generator, and an actuator incorporating a reed switch attached to the second flap. The first flap and the second flap are mutually rotatable about the fold. A permanent magnet may be mounted on a distal end of a movable tongue, with the proximal end of the tongue attached to the first flap and the distal end of the tongue slidably received within a recess in the circuit board, to place the magnet in operational proximity to the reed switch. The proximal end of the tongue is attached to the first flap at a location selected to place the magnet in sufficient proximity to the reed switch to cause the electrical contacts of the reed switch to switch between an electrically open state and an electrically closed state when rotation of the first flap relative to the second flap either places the magnet adjacent to the electrical contacts or moves the magnet away from proximity to the electrical contacts, to enable the electrical contacts of the reed switch to be closed to activate the sound generator to produce audio sound, or to be in an electrical open state to deactivate the sound generator and terminate the audio sound. The permanent magnet may be positioned to move close to a side of, but not beneath the reed switch so that the thickness of the acoustic card is reduced.